Second Grade
by Lililedger
Summary: They've known Hotstreak was crazy since second grade. HotGear for Crystallicsky.


Hey, it's lili. This was based off of a line in the show. I can't remember the actual line, but it was something like:

_'He's crazy.'_

_'We've known that since second grade.'_

I am greatlly inspired by the HotGear/Chack writer crystallicsky. GO! ADMIRE!

Disclaimer: Is Richie really gay? Oh wait, technically the answer is yes. Oh well, I still don't own.

BTW, I'm not proud of this. It ended in a different place than it started, and I don't like the highschool scene AT ALL.

Second Grade:

Kindergarten was great. First grade was okay. Richie Foley greeted second grade with a kind of nervous apprehension. It was the same old school, the same children, for the most part. Virgil was there, which was great. It would've been really hard to start a new grade without his best friend. Daisy and Frieda were there too. They were okay, for girls. Of course, Francis had to be in his class too. His spiky red hair had always scared Richie, That shade only belonged on crayons. Besides, Francis would never leave them alone! He always wanted to pick fights with Virgil, and Francis fought dirty! Once, he'd caught Richie by the tire swings and pelted him with rocks. Virgil never forgave him for that.

Virgil greeted Richie with a hug and "Richie! Richie! We get to pick our own seats!"

This news was a shock to the system, and while the other kids wasted time wandering around the classroom, Richie and Virgil scrambled to find the best seats. They chose a table in the back. They figured they'd ask Jimmy to fill in the third and final seat. Unfortionately, that didn't happen.

With Virgil on the end and Richie in the middle, the seat left for Jimmy was in the back corner of the room, perfect for hiding from teachers. They assumed that was why Francis chose to sit there just as Jimmy walked in.

"Francis!" Virgil shouted, slamming his hands down on the table, "That's Jimmy's seat!"

Francis smirked, leaning back slightly. "I don't see his name on it. Besides, do you think you and _Foley_ are gonna stop me?"

Richie said nothing. He refused to be on Francis' list all year, especially if he was gonna be stuck sitting next to him.

"Then we'll move!" Virgil shouted determinedly.

"Too late." Francis nodded towards the front of the room. "Teacher's ready to start."

Virgil sighed in defeat. "Guess we're stuck. Sorry, Rich."

As the teacher introduced herself, Richie felt a tug on his hair.

"Don't worry, Foley," Francis whispered, "This is just the beginning."

* * *

By recess, Francis had dumped pencil shavings on Richie's head, scribbled his name on Richie's arm in permanent marker, and dumped paint on Richie's pictures. All without getting caught. (Francis had threatened Richie with more rocks if he told. That was enough for him to keep the secret, even from Virgil.) Recess was a welcome break.

Or so he thought, until Francis followed him to the monkey bars. (Virgil was a smart kid. He figured out something was up with Francis and had to miss out on half of recess for threatining to pour pain on the redhead.)

Normally, Richie hated the monkey bars, particularly the dome shaped one. To him, it seemed like a giant cage. Unfortionately, he found himself scurrying across it in an attempt to escape his unwanted companion.

"Where ya goin', Foley?" Francis asked mockingly. He caught up to Richie at the very top of the dome, grabbing the blond's hands to prevent him from escaping.

"Let go, Francis!" Richie shouted, struggling to free himself. Even at eight years old, the redhead was stronger.

"Not a chance. I wanna chat, before Virgil comes and steals you." He pronounced Virgil's name with an unusual amount of venom for a second grader. Richie couldn't help but shudder.

"So, Foley," Francis continued with a smirk, "Virgil's your best friend, right?"

Richie nodded, unsure where this was going.

"And he'd be _real _upset if he lost you, right?"

No, Richie, _really _didn't like where this was going.

"So he'd be real upset if I did _this_?"

Richie's world flipped as Francis pushed him through the bars. He found himself hanging upside down in the dome, Francis' hands on his knees the only thing keeping him up.

"H-hey!"

Francis leaned forward, smirking. "Looks like I've got you right where I want you." He said.

"Francis! Let him go!"

From his awkward angle, Richie saw Francis roll his eyes, before glancing over his shoulder at Virgil.

"Do you _really_ think that's a good idea right now, Hawkins?" He let go of Richie's left leg to prove his point, and the blond's world tilted as he began to slide. He let out a squeek that any girl would've been ashamed of.

"Alright, alright, don't let him fall!" Virgil shouted, scrambling to climb onto the dome. Francis shot him a glare that stopped him in his tracks.

"If you come up here, I _will_ drop him."

"Um...guys...?" Richie stammered, "Being upside down hurts." Sure enough, his normally pale face was starting to match Francis' hair.

Francis sighed and knelt on Richie's knees, pulling him up just enough that, though he could still fall at any time, the blood was no longer rushing to his head.

"Richie was just agreeing to be _my_ best friend, weren't you Richie?"

"What?!"

This was shouted by both Virgil and Richie, and Francis gave an overdramatic sigh, letting go with one hand.

"Yes!" Richie shreiked. "Yes! I'll be your best friend, Francis!"

Francis smirked, tugging Richie back up. "Good choice, Foley."

It was the beginning of a ten year nightmare. They never managed to get rid of Francie. The terms of his 'friendship' seamed to be that if he felt like following them, (And he followed Richie _a lot._) they couldn't complain. Other than that, the agreement was never brought up. Just the knowledge of Richie's submission seemed to be enough.

Francis' unusual obsession with Richie followed them through the time 'Virgil' and 'Francis' became 'V' and 'F-stop,' even on after the birth of 'Static,' 'Hotstreak' and 'Gear.' It got to the point where random stolen objects began to appear in Richie's locker. Jewelery, cds. At first, Richie and V assumed Hotstreak was trying to frame them. Then the note appeared.

_'Babe-'_ That introduction was fairly freaksome on its own.

_'Remember how we became best friends? I've _never_ been good with words, so if you don't go out with me, I'm going to light you on fire._

_-Hotstreak._

_PS: Laugh and you're dead.'_

Hotstreak always was a crazy one.

END

Meh. I hate this.


End file.
